Genkan (玄関)

Recently, I purchased a book on Japanese derived from Buddhism. The book is divided into 5 chapters with about 10 everyday Japanese words and their roots in Buddhism explained. The most recent entry that I read explained the root of the Japanese word genkan (玄関), interpreted by modern speakers of Japanese to mean entrance or entryway to a building or residence. I would like to take the time to share this root with my readers. Enjoy.

Genkan derives from the the first kanji of the first word (玄妙) and last word (関門) in the phrase genmyou na michi ni hairu kanmon (玄妙な道に入る関門). Some relate the phrase as genmyou na michi e hairu kanmon (玄妙な道へ入る関門), where the ni is replaced with e and really makes not much of a difference in meaning. Either way, the phrase essentially means the same thing. The translation of this phrase might be slightly difficult, but plainly put it means "the gate to the path of Buddhism".

The phrase first came to Japan with the transmission of Zen Buddhism. It referred to the entrance of Zen Buddhist temples. Over time, the word was applied to porches built on the homes of court nobles where the carriages would pick them up. This transmitted further to the warrior class, whose homes also had porches built on them to settle disputes, and with the introduction of modern architecture and the spread of Buddhism to the common people, the entrance to modern buildings and residences has come to be called a genkan (玄関) in Japanese.

Among the other tidbits the book offers, many may also be surprised to learn that words like arigatou (ありがとう), daijoubu (大丈夫) and anshin (安心) also have their roots in Buddhism. I will save their explanations for future posts, however.

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Etymology #4: Work is suffering

Have you ever felt that your job is suffering? If so, you aren't alone.

Ancient Roman records attest to the existence of a torture device called the trepalium, later called the tripalium. This device name means three stakes and resembled something like this. Victims were attached to the stakes, then presumably set on fire. Not many records exist before 582 AD, so we don't know much about this device. But from this word sprang the Latin verb tripaliare with the meaning of 'to suffer', which took two roots into its daughter languages: in French it became travail (work) and in Spanish, first trebajo and then trabajo, trabajar (work, to work). The French word passed into English as trevail and then travel, initially referring to a long, tiring journey, but later taking its meaning in referring only to a journey.

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Tripalium Image